The Arizona sentinel., 1887-12-17
a MORSE WAR-SHIP.
Although Built a Thousand Years Ago 1t
Resembles Modern Vessels.

Resembles Modern Vessels.
No object so thoroughly fascinated
me in a visit to Norway and Sweden
during the summer of 1882 as the
splendid example of ancient shipping
discovered shortly before at Gokstad,
on one of the peninsulas of Southern
Norway.
The length from stem to stern over
all is 7S feet, the keel alone measuring
&C feet The breadth of BEAM. is 161
feet and the depth about feet. Oak
alone was used in the construction,
the body being unpainted, while the
stem and stern-pOsts were decorated.
The planks were laid on over the frame
timbers in our lapstreak style, each
overlapping the one below it, and
were fastened together with iron bolts
riveted and clinched upon the inside
"clinker-built," as we now call it.
The planking was lashed to the frames
by means of projections, with wicker
like cords or withes, made from the
roots of trees; and the seams were
calked with hair of cattle spun into a
cord of three strands, and this was
not driven into the crevices, bus laid
in when the planking was put to-
gether.
From this method of constr uctiOn,
as well as from the character of the
relics found and the use of the vessel
as a means of sepulture, Mr.. Nicolay-
sen infers that it was built during the
later iron age or between A. d. 700
and 1000. (The early iron age COM
prises the first seven centuries after
the Christian era.) The decorate of
the trimmings on the prov, gunwale
and stern-post, the numerous cary
ing, both upon the ship and the rel
les, together with the handy use of
eolors, exhibit very strong influence
from Irish decorative art. For in her
palmy days, before the beginning OF
he eighth century, Ireland outs ripped
every other country of Europe in min
iature painting and the ornamental
lion of metal and wood. This consid-
eraton fixes the date of construction
subsequent to A. d. 700.
Its great sharpness of build and fine
sheer gave TO it a model which does
lot suffer in comparison with that of
he Galatea or the best of the yachts
Ised on the En- glish coast for sailing
n deep waters. 1t had the advantage,
however. of a fattened bottom amid
ships, which must have secured 10 it
much greater steadiness than the En-
glish cutters; something, in fact, be-
;ween the cutter and the fiat keelless
BOAT of the center-board type-sug-
costing at once the model of Mr.. Bur-
yess' latest design, the Volunteer. The
peculiar method of attaching the rud-
Ter to the side of the stern affordC d
manifest advantages for shipping and
lnshipping, but did not admit of as
prompt an effect as does. the adjust
nent of the modern rudder. From the
height of the portfolios cut in the sides
20 receive the oars it is certain that
The oarsmen rowed in a sitting post
ure, as we see them on the Bayenx
tapestry and on the Haggeby stone in
Sweden. The merchant vessels were
not fitted with PORTFOLIOS for oars and
had no flooring on the beams, so that
the Gokstad vessel could only have
been a war-ship, especially as she was
fitted for sailing also, and carried at
least three small boats, indicating a
large crew. Besides, a trader would
never have been thought of for burial.
1t was, without doubt. then. individual
property, belonging to some prominent
chieftain, and must have carried from
seventy to eighty men, for the frag-
ments indicate that there were thirty
two shields and sixteen pairs of oars,
and as two men were necessary to han
die one oar of this size the rowers alone
must have been sixty-four in number.
-Scri61eer's MGgaztne.